Draumurinn er skýr.

to be

Breakdown of Draumurinn er skýr.

• skýr: clear
• draumurinn: the dream

Questions & Answers about Draumurinn er skýr.

What does the suffix -inn in draumurinn indicate?

In Icelandic, the definite article (“the”) is not a separate word but a suffix attached to the noun.

• draumur = “a dream” (indefinite)
• draumurinn = “the dream” (definite, masculine, nominative singular)

Why is the adjective skýr not in its weak form skýri, even though draumurinn is definite?

Icelandic adjectives have two declension patterns: strong (for predicates or indefinite nouns) and weak (for attributive adjectives with definite nouns).
Here, skýr is a predicate adjective following the linking verb er (“is”), so it uses the strong form regardless of the noun’s definiteness.
If it were attributive (directly before a definite noun), you would use the weak form:

• Attributive: skýri draumurinn (“the clear dream”)
• Predicative: draumurinn er skýr (“the dream is clear”)

How do I know that draumurinn is in the nominative case?

1. Subject role: In the sentence Draumurinn er skýr, draumurinn is the subject of er (“is”), so it must be in the nominative case.
2. Ending clue: For masculine nouns, the definite nominative singular ending is -inn. If it were in another case, the ending would change:
   
   • Genitive: draumsins
   • Dative: draumeinander (not used here, just for illustration)

How is the diphthong in pronounced?